MERGE, a unified media and creative agency, has appointed Michel Plunkett as its Director of Strategy & Analytics, where he will help clients make sense of the current data deluge and apply his multiple areas of expertise to building new products and capabilities. He reports to Laura Luckman Kelber, EVP, managing director of Strategy.

Well versed in strategy, media, technology and business analytics, Plunkett has already put his stamp on the MERGE roster, creating easy-to-use analytics dashboards and establishing a business intelligence practice that integrates data from store sales, operations, brand health, the website and social.

“Michael brings rigor and creativity to everything he does,” said Luckman Kelber. “He’s a pragmatist who knows how to show clients data in a way that means something. He also understands technology and media at its core, which helps him create the fuel for insights that will grow their business.”

Plunkett started his career as an ad agency media planner before shifting gears to digital analytics at Omnicom and, later, creative analytics at Leo Burnett. During his stint at Legacy.com, a top 50 website in the U.S., he was instrumental in building the brand’s analytics offerings from scratch. Known as a thoughtful problem solver and consummate pragmatist, Plunkett will develop and enhance the analytics infrastructure at MERGE.

For brands that don’t fully grasp data mining, predictive modeling and customer segmentation, Plunkett can explain it. There’s a reason he describes himself as a “data ninja.” And, he’ll use those capabilities to uncover hidden nuggets of information that will help companies grow.

Plunkett, a native of the Chicago area, serves as an ambassador for the Gift of Hope, a nonprofit organ and tissue donor network, helping expand its community and public outreach.